Abu Dujana, military commander and also Zarkasih, caretaker leader of the Asian terror network Jemaah Islamiyah, were found guilty yesterday by presiding Judge Wahjono and were sentenced to 15 years in jail.

The Indonesian government’s crackdown on terrorism was a true success, registering hundreds of arrests in the past few years. Their efforts have been sustained by foreign governments which also consider the terrorist threat a main issue.

The Southeast group is severely feared in the area and over the years has been blamed for a string of deadly bombings in Indonesia, such as the 2002 bombings on its resort island of Bali, a 2003 attack on the J.W. Marriott Hotel in Jakarta, a 2004 attack on the Australian Embassy in Jakarta and also the triple suicide bombings in 2005 on restaurants in Bali.

The drama is even greater as more than 240 of the victims were foreign tourists on vacation.

Fortunately for the two defendants, they were not found in any connection with those tragedies. If that would have been the case, they might have faced death sentences.

The Jemaah Islamiyah movement first appeared in the early 1990’s with its core leadership trained in Afghanistan and was strongly influenced by al-Qaida.

According to CNN, terrorism expert Sidney Jones believes that another Jemaah leader, Abdur Rohin,  already replaced Zarkasih and the outcome of the arrest cannot be estimated at the moment. "It is another major blow to Jemaah Islamiyah, but difficult to tell what the impact will be. It could embolden a more militant faction. [It] could also lead to some serious reassessment within the organization about its future."